After the death of the Prophet (sallallaahu
'alaihi wa sallam), Muslims witnessed much controversy and
disagreement on matters related to the religion. With the
appearance of heretical groups came the need to refute foreign
ideas from the religion and preserve the creed held by the
Prophet (may Allah exalt His mention) and his Companions,
which resulted in much disputing, and even bloodshed, among
Muslims.
However, religious disputes were
not solely characteristic of those between heretical groups
and Muslims upon the Sunnah, but they were also present
among Muslims who held fast to the Sunnah.
Nevertheless, these disagreements
between the people of the Sunnah were, as described by early
scholars, those that did not harm them in the least. In
other words, even in matters of serious disagreement, the
scholars of the Sunnah remained respectful toward one another
and continued to love one another for the sake of Allah.
In recent times, by the mercy of
Allah, the scholars of this ummah have continued on this
path of mutual respect even in disagreement, but, unfortunately,
the laypeople have witnessed something entirely different.
Since the common person does not have the knowledge, wisdom,
and good manners of a scholar, she is likely to approach
an issue of difference of opinion quite differently than
would a person of knowledge. As a result, an issue that
results in respectful disagreement among the scholars more
often than not results in bitter disputation and animosity
among laypeople. Of course, one of the most obvious examples
of this is the disagreement on Islam’s view of the
niqaab, the face veil.
Although the issue of whether or
not the niqaab is obligatory (fard) or recommended (mustahabb)
is the central dispute among Muslims, this essay will address
another aspect of the niqaab dispute that is often left
out of scholarly discourse on the issue but is the source
of great harm and animosity among Muslims: the absence of
respect for one another’s view on the niqaab.
It goes without saying that the answer
to whether or not the niqaab is obligatory or recommended
will never be solved in circles of laypeople, for it has
not even be solved in circles of scholars. In fact, the
arguments are so detailed and specific on each side that
it quite likely will not be solved until the Day of Judgment.
With such a reality, arguments among laypeople on this issue
should be rare to nonexistent except in the context of a
friendly exchange of information. Unfortunately, this is
not the case, and bitter arguments characterize many Muslim
discussions. Internet chat rooms, message boards, and sisters’
gatherings are just a few examples of this. However, what
is more unfortunate is that beyond the argument itself is
an underlying intolerance, if not disrespect, among Muslims
for a person having another point of view than them.
On one of the most popular Muslim
websites on the internet, a message board was titled “Yes
to Hijaab, No to Niqaab,” and, as the title suggests,
the board was filled with a host of insults—from Muslims—against
Muslim women who wear niqaab, ranging from labeling them
extremist to referring to the niqaab as “repulsive”.
On the flip side, it is not uncommon to hear sisters who
wear niqaab discussing, quite vehemently, the senselessness
of a woman displaying her face in public. However, Muslims
should avoid such harmful discourse that does nothing more
than create animosity in our hearts (which prevents us from
loving each other for the sake of Allah) and removes faith
from our hearts and replaces it with diseases that corrupt
our souls. In addition to such harmful discussions and despite
Islam being very clear that Muslims are one brotherhood,
many Muslims have an “us versus them” mode of
thinking on the issue of the veil, in which sisters who
wear niqaab comprise one group and those who do not wear
niqaab comprise another group. Sometimes this “us
versus them” phenomenon manifests itself in conversations,
and, more seriously, it sometimes manifests itself in people’s
choosing of friends. In other words, the “us versus
them” mode of thinking has affected us so much that
many Muslims choose—and lose—friends based on
whether or not someone does or does not wear niqaab, even
if this choice or loss is not done intentionally. There
are even Muslim internet groups and clubs that base membership
on whether or not a sister wears niqaab, which further complicates
the phenomenon of categorizing, and thus dividing, ourselves
by our dress.
Another phenomenon regarding the
niqaab is the further dividing of Muslims based on how frequent
a person wears or does not wear niqaab. What happens here
is an offshoot of the “us versus them” phenomenon
in that a sister who wears niqaab sometimes finds herself
at odds with a sister who wears it all the time. This phenomenon
further manifests itself when a sister who wants to wear
niqaab is given an ultimatum: all or nothing. In other words,
she must either wear the niqaab all of the time or not all,
leaving her to feel as if she has to choose “us”
or “them”. This position, which does not recognize
an Islamic position in between, has been defended by the
belief, “If you don’t wear it all of the time,
then it’s not for the sake of Allah.” This ultimatum
is actually given quite frequently as advice to sisters
thinking of covering their faces. In fact, many sisters
thinking of wearing the niqaab have been warned against
being like the “them” group, who “wear
it and then take it off,” whether they stop wearing
it altogether or wear it only sometimes.
Despite this “all or nothing”
position having little, if any, basis in the Qur’an
or Sunnah, it is a strange one due primarily to the fact
that, although wearing niqaab is, at least, mustahabb and
thus an act of worship, many Muslims treat the wearing of
niqaab unlike they do any other act of worship. For example,
if a person is thinking of praying Tahajjud in the last
third of the night, which is undoubtedly a mustahabb act,
it would be strange advice for someone to assert that only
if she prays it every night will it be for the sake of Allah—or
only if she prays the same amount of rakaat would it be
for the sake of Allah. If such were the case, none of our
prayers at night could be counted as for the sake of Allah.
The defense of the “all or nothing” stance often
is that Allah loves acts done consistently, and although
this is true, it is primarily the issue of niqaab (versus
other acts of worship) that the right of the individual
to determine that consistency is taken away. In other acts
of worship, a person’s practice and consistency is
respected, and it would be unthinkable for Muslims to frown
upon a Muslim who consistently prays Tahajjud three times
a week versus seven. That a person prays the supererogatory
prayer at all is applauded. However, if a person wears niqaab
sometimes, which too is at least mustahabb, instead of being
encouraged in the good she is doing, she is instead outcast
because others tend to measure her supererogatory act by
what she is not doing. Consequently, even if she wears the
veil sometimes, but consistently (like each time she goes
to the masjid), she is ostracized and discouraged in her
efforts because she does not wear at other times too. This
discouraging and ostracizing of a person who does a mustahabb
act “only sometimes” is a phenomenon seen almost
exclusively in the act of wearing niqaab and no other act
of worship, at least where animosity and harsh overtones
are concerned.
This phenomenon of treating only
the act of wearing niqaab in this manner further proves
that it has become an act of division instead of worship
for some Muslims; otherwise, it would be treated as other
supererogatory acts are, wherein an individual’s practice
is respected, regardless of the extent of that practice.
But since the wearing of the niqaab is an “all or
nothing” issue to many sisters, what has resulted
is the furthering of the gap between “us” versus
“them.” Furthermore, since all Muslims embarking
upon a mustahabb act for the first time will naturally want
to feel free (and comfortable) to do it at their own pace,
many sisters who consider wearing niqaab never do, for fear
of being ostracized and having their right to choose to
what extent they will practice the supererogatory act taken
away from them. In other words, they feel as if they actually
do have to choose “all or nothing” and be a
part of the “us” or “them” group.
Consequently, and very unfortunately, the giving of this
ultimatum has resulted in the commanding of the evil (i.e.
discouraging sisters from practicing the Sunnah) and the
forbidding of the good (i.e. doing a mustahabb act, even
if only sometimes) instead of vice versa. However, in true
Islam no such ultimatum or grouping exists.
In contrast, Islam does not frown
upon any good, no matter how seemingly small it may be in
our eyes, and it commands us to be merciful with one another.
Muslim women are sisters to one another, and whether or
not a person wears niqaab at all, let alone sometimes or
all of the time, should have no bearing on this sisterhood.
We are here to help one another in the affairs of the Hereafter,
not to give ultimatums and divide (or befriend) based on
dress. The Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) left
us on a clear path and showed us so many opportunities to
earn extra reward from Allah (free is He from all imperfections)
that even if we tried to take advantage of them all, we
could not. Thus, each of us must choose from the seemingly
countless good acts that we can do and do as much of them
as we can. Naturally, each individual’s choice of
good will differ from another person’s. How much a
person does of a particular act and how consistent she is
in that act will vary from person to person, but the right
of that person to determine what she believes to be the
strongest proof on an issue and how (and if) she will practice
it (and to what extent) should be respected as her individual
choice.
Disagreements are a fact of life
and cannot be avoided, but how we deal with disagreements
is an important question for one who is concerned for her
soul. This is especially true since how we use our tongue,
how safe a Muslim feels around us, and our character are
three things that will weigh heavily on the Day of Judgment,
in addition to them being central to our Islam itself. The
Prophet (may Allah exalt His mention) said, “A Muslim
is he from whose hand and tongue the Muslims are safe.”
Furthermore, he advised us to make things easy for the people.
Allah says of the Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam),
“To the believers, he is most kind and merciful”
(9:128).
When we think of our view on the
niqaab issue, can we say that the Muslims are safe from
our tongue? Does our manner in approaching this issue emulate
the mercy and kindness displayed in the Sunnah? Do we make
things easy for the people? If we can perfect these areas
in our lives and, by the mercy of Allah, truly follow the
Sunnah, we would cease to find it important to make certain
everyone views the wearing or not wearing of niqaab as we
do. We would not find the veil repulsive or extreme. We
would not create an “us” versus “them”
relationship between Muslims and form friendships and groups
based on our dress. And we would no longer concern ourselves
with how frequently a person wears or does not wear niqaab.
Furthermore, we would not discourage our sister from doing
an act beloved to her Lord by giving her an ultimatum (that
we have no right to give) and ostracizing those who do the
beloved act “only sometimes”. Only when we respect
each other’s positions and practices on issues of
legitimate disagreement and remove from our discussions
and judgments the acts of others, who are doing nothing
less than striving to please Allah, can we truly be believers
and love one another for the sake of Allah.
- Baiyinah Bint Muhammad Source:
http://www.minhajalmuslim.com
